Baltimore attractions

Knights, horses, swords, and falcons: these are just some of the thrilling features of the action-packed and family-friendly Medieval Times Dinner and Tournament in Baltimore. Journey back to the 11th century to cheer for jousting knights as you take in the show as a guest of the King in his lavish castle.

Baltimore is known for its offbeat attractions, and the American Visionary Art Museum is one of its most idiosyncratic. The museum specializes in showing the work of outsider artists, those who typically have had no formal art education and work outside the mainstream art world. The museum taps guest curators for all its shows.

One of Baltimore’s top cultural destinations, the Baltimore Museum of Art (BMA) was founded more than 100 years ago with just a single painting. Today, its sprawling collections encompass more than 97,000 works, including artworks and antiquities from cultures around the world. It also has 3 acres (1.2 hectares) of sculpture gardens and the most extensive collection of Matisse’s works on public view.

Located in Baltimore’s Inner Harbor, the Port Discovery Children’s Museum is one of the best places in town for kids to play, explore, and get creative. Featuring a wide range of interactive play areas and immersive environments located across three floors, the family-oriented museum also offers a range of entertaining programming.

One of Baltimore’s most historic, grand performance spaces, the Hippodrome Theatre was built over 100 years ago. Originally designed as a vaudeville theater and movie palace, the 3,000-seat venue gradually declined before being revived. Today, the theater is part of the France-Merrick Performing Arts Center and hosts touring Broadway shows, Cirque du Soleil, live comedy, and more.

Encompassing five historic buildings and 36,000 art objects, the Walters Art Museum began as an eclectic private collection donated to the city of Baltimore. It has grown into one of the city’s most impressive cultural institutions, featuring a permanent exhibit ranging from ancient Roman sarcophagi, illuminated Korans, Egyptian mummies, European landscape paintings, and a German Wunderkammer, or curiosity cabinet. Best of all, admission is always free.

Housed within a historic former oyster cannery, the Baltimore Museum of Industry is dedicated to the city's industrial history (and to the workers who powered that history). Featuring an array of permanent and temporary exhibitions—as well as weekend demonstrations of forges, Linotype machines, and other tools—the museum offers an interactive experience for visitors of all ages.